Wang Yi Accuses U.S. of “Hysterical” Behaviour at Munich Security Conference

At the Munich Security Conference on Saturday, China’s top diplomat Wang Yi accused the United States of violating international norms with “hysterical” behaviour. Wang was referring to the U.S. military’s downing of an aerial object on February 4th, which the U.S. suspected to be a Chinese spy balloon.

Wang said that the U.S. reaction to the discovery of the balloon was “absurd” and asked the U.S. to handle the situation calmly and professionally. He added that the use of advanced fighter jets and missiles to bring down the balloon was an “abuse of the use of force” and did not show America’s strength.

The comments by Wang Yi have further clouded the prospects of a meeting between Wang and U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken at the sidelines of the gathering. When asked by Reuters whether he would meet Blinken, Wang declined comment.

The Munich Security Conference is an annual gathering of world leaders and security experts to discuss global security issues. This year, the conference has been dominated by the global response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine as the war grinds towards its second year.

The comments by Wang Yi have further highlighted the growing tensions between the U.S. and China. It remains to be seen whether the two countries will be able to resolve their differences and work together to address global security issues.